Keeping a balanced diet can be a huge challenge during Chinese New Year. All the tempting goodies and endless gatherings will only increase your need to indulge. Oh my, it is hard to resist, isn’t it?

Just follow these 6 tips on how you can stay healthy amidst all the goodies and you can enjoy this festive season without any worries!

6 TIPS TO STAY HEALTHY DURING CNY

Keeping a balanced diet can be a huge challenge during Chinese New Year. All the tempting goodies and endless gatherings will only increase your need to indulge. Oh my, it is hard to resist, isn’t it?

Just follow these 6 tips on how you can stay healthy amidst all the goodies and you can enjoy this festive season without any worries!

Tip No. 1: Stay Hydrated

Keep yourself hydrated at all times and water will be your best friend this Chinese New Year. At times, you may mistake thirst as hunger and that will entice you to reach out for more pineapple tarts to fill you up. Also, did you know that drinking lots of water helps to flush out wastes that has been accumulated from feasting?

Remember, when you feel like having a beverage, think of water because it gives you zero calories!

Tip no. 2: Stay Active

Majority will use festive period as an excuse to stop working out. Sometimes, we get caught up with back to back gatherings that we don’t have time to exercise. How about trying out a workout regime during the festive season? Aim for a 30-minute walk every day or take every opportunity to move during gatherings; such as playing with kids, or park your car further from your destination to have a relaxing stroll!

Alternatively, join U Live for a trial Yoga Fitness Lite to have a try out. Click here to find out more. Skip the snacking and start the exercising! This is a low impact sport that is definitely suitable for all beginners who has not tried out Yoga before.

Tip No. 3: Watch your Portions

Snacking can be very addictive. Once you start, you can’t stop. Rather than agonising over total snack ban, how about trying to limit your snacking to just 1 or 2 pieces per snack? Try to keep yourself occupied through socialising or playing games to distract yourself from the snack table. Don’t overeat during meals, just limit yourself and eat in moderation. That will keep you safe! Tip No. 4: Snack less by not going on an empty stomach

Usually, we make our stomach free to ‘make space’ for feasting during visits and we often fall for this trap. That is because, we will end up overeating or we may end up snacking too much.

Try this method. Eat a healthy snack, like a fruit or yoghurt bar with nuts before visiting.

This eases your hunger and prevents you from overeating during your visit. In addition, you get to increase your overall fibre intake and meet your daily needs!

While you snack, try to keep a balanced diet that includes fibre, protein and vitamins. Snacking on New Year goodies may not be a good replacement of a proper meal. Hence, you will still need to ensure that you have enough vegetables in your meals.

Tip No. 5: Get enough sleep

Popular Chinese New Year games such as mahjong and card games can lead you to play till wee hours and this could be a problem with the inadequate amount of sleep. Try to take a nap when there’s a chance to have your energy recharged.

Tip No. 6: Eat Selectively

Traditional Chinese New Year goodies can taste really yummy and are often irresistible! However, do you know that majority of the goodies are packed with sugar and fats? In addition, they contain very little nutritional value.

Check out these calories count from the 10 most popular Chinese New Year goodies:

1. Nian Gao : 482 calories per serving

2. Bak Kwa – 179 calories per piece

l3. Peanuts – 170 calories per bowl (30g)

4. Kueh Lapis 157 calories per piece

5. Love Letters – 112 calories per piece

6. Cornflakes Cookie – 82.8 calories per piece

7. Pineapple Tart – 82 calories per piece

8. Kuih Bahulu – 40 calories per piece

9. Kuih Bangkit – 23 calories per piece

10. Mini Dried Shrimp Roll – 22 calories per piece

So, if you are moving from one house to another and eating everything offered in each house, try to aim for not more than 2,000 calories in a day (including your normal meals).

Tip No. 6: Prepare a Healthy Reunion Dinner!

During special occasions, dining at a fancy restaurant might be of a preferred choice. But, how about opting for homemade steamboat dinner instead? It’s healthier and you get to choose what goes into your dish!

Here are some dietician tips to whip up a healthy yet delicious reunion dinner:

Include a variety of colourful vegetables to enhance the colour of your dish. In addition, vegetables add nutrients and have beneficial phytochemicals

Go for a fish dish as it is rich in protein and is heart healthy

Choose lean meat and skinless poultry over fatty meat

Try to serve unpolished rice, brown rice or buckwheat noodles as these whole-grains foods contain abundant of nutrients and fibre.

Use sauces that are labelled with the Healthier Choice icon as they are low in sodium but still, taste as good!

If you are hosting steamboat meals, you can prepare soup base with soybeans and vegetables instead of instant or ready-made stock. This will enhance the soup’s nutritional value for your guests.

• Instead of serving soft drinks or sweetened packet drinks, how about preparing homemade ice lemon juice or flower tea? Also, you can serve a plate of fruit salad or healthy nuts as snacks to replace some Chinese New Year goodies.

With these approaches to the festive season, you can now have a blasting good time as you usher the Chinese New Year!